The Links Between Transport Investment and Economic Growth

Currently, transport investment decisions are based on assumptions that underestimate their economic impact. However, a new methodology has recently been developed which allows people to better measure the value of these wider economic benefits. The Leeds City Region research pilots this new methodology by applying it to three packages of transport improvements. The findings suggest that targeted improvements to urban transport networks could add tens of millions of pounds to a citys economic bottom line each year, especially when access to city centre concentrations of high-value jobs and services is improved. The research finds that incorporating wider economic benefits into our selected investments adds between 12 and 25 percent to their value. Including these agglomeration benefits could radically improve the economic case for transport investment in cities across the UK.